Here. It's only been a year since an episode, but that just happened to be the year that felt like it lasted 37 years, so it feels like it's been gone since 1998 or something. It's a welcome return, one of the better conceived and executed comics podcasts going.

Random Comics News Story Round-Up* not a lot of substance in this article asking after sustained sales woe facing the X-Men franchise -- the one-time, long-time king of comic book land. It's mostly impressive for how much advertising they stuff in there. It's still a question worth asking, though, and the basics are covered in fine, straight-ahead prose. I thought Marvel was onto something with the Brubaker/Fraction mutant city stuff, and the original X-Men team being stuck into the modern one was at least something I hadn't seen before although the resulting plot lines seemed to disappoint. It's definitely a comic line whose one-time sales and place at the center of superhero culture keeps it from the fuck-it reset that might get people talking again. The wedding stuff from this summer seemed like something from an Eight Is Enough reunion special. I'd reboot the concept around Team America.

* the AAEC speaks out in solidarity with the victims and survivors at the Capital Gazette. The idea we're going to live in a world moving forward when obsessive, stunted humans end others' lives spurred on by political opportunists is depressing in the extreme.

This is one of those stories where every other sentence is with a half-day's discussion, but it seems pretty clear that authors are doing worse even as the systems that support them suffer less, that we don't question the effect of making everyone free agents out to find their way has on most of those individuals, that we don't question the basic utility of these contracts as long as there's an arguable path to success for a few of the folks that sign them.

I don't want to live in a comics world where having the big prose-book players involved means that people already economically advantaged have that much more of a dominant voice. Just because it's a better deal does n't mean it's a good one.

* here's some bundled news that can't wait until next week and the possible holiday making people less likely to see it: LOAC is going to do a Lost Art style book featuring the work of the late, great Alex Toth. I initially called him Alex Roth because I'm an idiot and my new iMAC defaults to a tiny type. My apologies to fans of the master.

Here are the books that make an impression on me staring at this week's no-doubt largely accurate list of books shipping from Diamond Comic Distributors, Inc. to comic book and hobby shops across North America.

I might not buy all of the works listed here. I might not buy any. You never know. I'd sure look at the following, though.

*****

APR181550 POOCHYTOWN HC WOODRING $19.99
I think Jim Woodring is one of the great cartoonists of this creation and it looks like this may be among his most important books. I can't wait.

FEB180057 BEANWORLD OMNIBUS TP VOL 01 $24.99FEB180084 ELFQUEST FINAL QUEST TP VOL 04 $17.99FEB180059 USAGI YOJIMBO TP VOL 32 $17.99
Multiple veterans of comics' greatest generation set up finding the best formats for their work to live on a bit longer in sales warehouses and bookshelves. I might have to be convinced to step away from the traditional comic-book format for Beanworld, but I'm happy to have the option. I also look forward to reading this final burst of Elfquest material. I love endings generally. Finally, there's Usagi Yojimbo, the all-time hammock comic. Imagine having 32 volumes of that material to read! The knees weaken.

FEB180021 NEIL GAIMAN STUDY IN EMERALD HC $17.99NOV170387 ABSOLUTE SANDMAN OVERTURE HC (MR) $125.00
A pair from the House Of Gaiman. I know nothing about that first one, but Rafael Albuquerque is almost always interesting and pairing him with Gaiman seems slight counter-intuitive in a good way.

DEC170397 LEGION OF SUPER HEROES SILVER AGE OMNIBUS HC VOL 02 $75.00
I enjoy multiple iterations of DC's teenaged superheroes in space, including the original run of narratively inventive stories that I assume is the basis of this collection. I've never had full access to those comics and at some point I'll be looking to read more than few reprints to which I've had access over the years.

APR180886 CHARLIES ANGELS #1 CVR A FINCH $3.99APR180887 CHARLIES ANGELS #1 CVR B EISMA $3.99APR180888 CHARLIES ANGELS #1 CVR C EISMA CHARACTER DESIGN $3.99
I'd like to say I'm a better person than to have pulled these three listing just to make a David Ogden Stiers action figure joke, but I'd like a lot of things.

APR180432 COMIC BOOK HISTORY OF COMICS TP COMICS FOR ALL $15.99
This is a sturdy project that might appeal to the casual in-shop browser.

APR180603 KILL OR BE KILLED #20 CVR A PHILLIPS (MR) $3.99MAR188707 KILL OR BE KILLED #20 CVR B VIRGIN (MR) $3.99APR180631 SAGA #53 (MR) $2.99APR180512 SEX CRIMINALS #25 (MR) $4.99APR180641 WICKED & DIVINE #37 CVR A MCKELVIE & WILSON (MR) $3.99
Hey, here's the comic-book format comics of the week, including a really strong Wednesday for Image serials. I lost track of the numbers on the Brubaker/Phillips, but that has to be the last one. I liked that series as it continue, and it's really attractive. Saga is a concluding issue away from going back into hibernation again, so I hope shop owners are enjoying having these comic books arrive when they do. I want to write a bit at length on Sex Criminals, which has made good use of the shift that comes with a story-arc set-up. Finally, I never think I all the way get Wicked And Divine, but that's a comic that refreshingly doesn't care if I do.

FEB181703 INVADER ZIM HC VOL 02 $49.99
I'm not certain at what point I'll try to have some of this work in my home, but another hardcover is a promising sign for soon.

MAR180566 SILENCE OF MALKA HC $24.99
Here's something I like about comic shops, picking up and taking a look at a book like this. It's early Jewish settlement drama, but this time in 19th Century Argentina. That's enough of a shift for me to take a look for sure.

*****

The full list of this week's releases, including some titles with multiple cover variations and a long, impressive list of toys and other stuff that isn't comics, can be found here. Despite this official list there's no guarantee a comic will show up in the stores as promised, or in all of the stores as opposed to just a few. Also, stores choose what they carry and don't carry so your shop may not carry a specific publication. There are a lot of comics out there.

To find your local comic book store, check this list; and for one I can personally recommend because I've shopped there, albeit a while back, try this.

The above titles are listed with their Diamond order code in the first field, which may assist you in finding comics at your shop or having them order something for you they don't have in-stock. Ordering through a direct market shop can be a frustrating experience, so if you have a direct line to something -- you know another shop has it, you know a bookstore has it -- I'd urge you to consider all of your options.

* here's a new editorial cartoon controversy, over a Steve Bell cartoon his editor felt referenced the Holocaust in a way it shouldn't have. Bell's protest reached enough people on the newspaper staff the cartoon eventually leaked. This seems a more sophisticated discussion than simply a matter of which political viewpoint is being engaged and there are no easy answers even if you think the question isn't all that difficult.

* the differences between film and comics are so vast that even if I agree with every notion laid out in this article, I'd have a hard time aligning with potential comic book truths. But it's a nice thing for a general mental meander into how the interaction between customer and art form is directly shaped by the particulars the industry puts on point.

* finally: Kevin Anderson writes about the Rob Rogers situation noting that the dramatic firing of Rogers over the content of his cartoons had a predecessor in the industry about-face on the value of staff cartooning. In both cases it wasn't the content it was the idea that the paper needed to negotiate the living, breathing cartoonist that made them. This is never a problem when editors simply choose a syndicated cartoon to fit.

Your 2018 Ringo Award NomineesI'm not totally certain how long they've been up, but the front page of The Mike Wieringo Comic Book Industry Awards (aka the Ringo Awards) have gone up on their front page with instructions on how to vote.

The awards program is named for the late, popular artist Mike Wieringo (1963-2007), who in addition to be a much-admired artist worked a style that broke with many mainstream comics conventions.

This year's professional jury was Michael Cavna, Marty Grosser, Karla Marsh-Southern, Rob Still and Gus Vazquez. The awards program is held the weekend of Baltimore Comic-Con, which this year is September 28-30.

* Sean Phillips discusses and shows cover art from his next project with writer Ed Brubaker, the published-as-a-single-volume My Heroes Have Always Been Junkies. That's due in October. That Kill Or Be Killed art he did with Elizabeth Breitweiser providing colors might have been the best-looking work in Phillips' career-to-date.

* not comics: this photo is an amazing item of evidence in The Case Of The Imploding Newspaper Industry. How anyone expects information delivery to work AT ALL with this kind of basic disruption and turnover is beyond me.

* Heidi MacDonald takes a brief survey of initial pushback on DC's latest Wal-Mart announcement, which includes exclusive content from top talent. It's mostly just fighting/promoting the idea of the issues involved rather than a realistic portrait of how those issues will play out. I don't see a connection between the two markets that isn't dogmatic in nature and conception.

* finally: all of us have been or still are Noah Van Sciver in this cartoon.

* Katie Skelly is heading into the last several days of her tarot deck crowd-funder, looking to surpass a goal at which point everyone gets a Zodiac print. That's Leo to the left. Skelly is a prolific enough cartoonist that success with crowd-funding could drastically change how she approaches projects in general.

* here's a campaign I totally missed to provide the writers Leah Moore and John Reppion some assistance through rough times, times that have come in the context of the generally low pay upon which the makers of comics depend.

Random Comics News Story Round-Up* some folks at VICE News went to Paws Inc. to interview Jim Davis on the 40th anniversary of Garfield. Garfield is a ubiquitous presence in the minds of al to of cartoonists under 40, adheres to its gag-strip strengths in much the same way the longest-running sitcoms do, and owns a specific trade format. That's not a bad list of interesting things about a strip starting a fifth decade.

DC Comics Goes Full Year Between Wal-Mart PlansAt least I think it's been that long. The new initiative also features A-list talent and proven serials, but it looks like its distinguishing factors are a mix of exclusive new comics with older serials, plus a really aggressive plot point of approximately $5.

I think a lot of this will initially be discussed in vague industry-progression terms. I do think there's a market for a few comics publications that are priced as an add-on and that will also be sold in areas that haven't had a store since Marvel drove everything over a cliff in the mid-1990s -- I lived in a town like that for 11 years, and paper Shonen Jump killed there. If DC finds a way to make this one happen, that will be a good deal for them. I also hope the DC contracts from 2000-on have been such that the creators get paid a reprint fee, but I don't have any memory of those kinds of details from what little of I know of those contracts.

I imagine there will be conjectural pushback from the Direct Market. I don't think that's a single pie being divvied up. Period. I will forgive DM stores a more general frowny-face at a client base that will occasionally innovate in one market but seems determined to stay locked into the past with an existing one. That must kind of suck.

* here's an NPR piece about all things Nancy: the strip's mini-resurgence under Olivia Jaimes and the masterful work of comics insight How To Read Nancy by those twin, grand gentlemen of comics Paul Karasik and Mark Newgarden. That seems like a nice way to close out the week.

* Short Run will accept applications through July 31, and there is a travel grant. That's a show I use as an excuse to hang around in Seattle for a few days and see friends, because that is still an amazing city, but I was really taken with the quality of that show floor. I could have spent $2000.

* finally: I heard great things about allthreeshows that happened last weekend including that Heroes Con had one of their best Saturdays ever. For their next trick I would like all three to find their own weekends for next year; Heroes has already picked theirs, but they could get to choose first being the granddaddy.

* Here's a bunch of Rob Rogers firing links. I can't believe people think like this. I guess they do. Bill Clinton was a liar and I'm sure President Obama was, but a failed promise isn't a lie and there can be multiple liars. Really. It's its own thing. If we can't even parse the language the same way it gives me very little hope that arguing will ever solve anything. Of course, we have 20 years of the Internet now to know that as truth. Here's a fairly rational letter from a reader of the Times. There are no rules, really, but a vision for an editorial cartoonist that allows for a dissent is healthier for everyone. I say that as someone who rarely agrees with newspaper cartoonists, and worked on a newspaper staff with a heavy conservative slant. I don't know how making editorial cartoons collaborations or suggesting that a cartoonist's output is the same as the pieces written by an editorial board squares with anything short of a deranged history as to how newspapers best work. I'm glad to see the idea it was a single cartoon responsible debunked. This is much scarier. It's nice to see it projected on buildings, but this was a repudiation of an entire political point of view and of a way of doing cartoons that people have accepted for more than half a century. There wasn't a straw that broke this camel's back; that animal was skinned.

Editorial cartoonist Rob Rogers lost his job when his right-wing employers couldn't stand how many cartoons he chose to do that were disparaging of the President. His comics were turned down and both he and his work were mischaracterized by Trump supporters as overly harsh or angry. I hope that he makes as much of his previous living as possible, and you could do worse as a matter of modern free speech to support Mr. Rogers.

Missed It: 2018 Finger Awards To Writers Joye Hummel Murchison Kelly And Dorothy Roubicek Woolfolk
The Bill Finger Award organizers have named their recipients for 2018: Joye Hummel Murchison Kelly and Dorothy Roubicek Woolfolk, addressing gender imbalance in the history of comics writing and also within the awards program itself.

Kelly is this year's living recipient, having worked on a number of stories for publication featuring the Wonder Woman characters, under the byline "Charles Moulton." Her period working on these stories was the peak American comics landscape that lasted from 1944-1947. Much of her work that has recently be reprinted in the wake of the character's successful adaptation to film. She will accept her award in person.

Woolfolk was a writer and editor at All-American Publications, a company eventually absorbed by DC Comics. She also worked for Martin Goodman's line of comics and for EC. In the 1970s Woolfolk edited a number of books for DC Comics. She wrote scripts throughout. The Finger Awards PR has Woolfolk responsible for adding Kryptonite to the Superman narratives, a story in itself. Woolfolk passed away in 2000, and her award will be accepted by her daughter.

The Bill Finger Award was created in 2005 from a proposal made by the late writer, artist and creator advocate Jerry Robinson. It is named for William Finger (1914-1974), a co-creator of the mythos-defining early Batman comics and a few dozen others during a long career at DC Comics. The selection committee is Charles Kochman, Kurt Busiek, Jim Amash, Scott Shaw! and Marv Wolfman. The major sponsor for 2018 is DC Comics. The awards will be presented on July 20 during the Eisner Awards ceremony at Comic-Con International. Past winners include Steve Gerber, Don Rosa, Don McGregor, Bob Haney and Otto Binder.

Here are the books that make an impression on me staring at this week's no-doubt largely accurate list of books shipping from Diamond Comic Distributors, Inc. to comic book and hobby shops across North America.

I might not buy all of the works listed here. I might not buy any. You never know. I'd sure look at the following, though.

*****

APR181393 SPONGEBOB COMICS ANNUAL GIANT SWIMTACULAR #6 $4.99
These comics are usually solid and I'm sure this one is, too, but for sure I'm putting it top of post here for that fun Gary Gianni cover. Good job, Chris Duffy.

APR180037 USAGI YOJIMBO #4 (OF 7) THE HIDDEN $3.99APR180070 WITCHFINDER GATES OF HEAVEN #2 (OF 5) (MR) $3.99APR180236 WILD STORM #14 $3.99APR180566 BEEF #5 (OF 5) (MR) $3.99APR180758 CAPTAIN AMERICA #704 $3.99
I did not see a whole lot of comic-book comics that triggered my attention. I always love new Usagi and mostly love new Mignola-verse. I do like the Warren Ellis version of the old WildStorm comics; there's something about Ellis' devotion to lean narrative that makes his reductions of superheroes-with-a-history tend to work well. I don't have any affection for those characters, though. Beef is Shaky Kane, and I always buy Shake Kane. Captain America is the latest in the post-Samnee, still-Mark Waid, pre-Ta-Nehisi Coates run, and I like this artist they've found to follow Samnee if only briefly. Super-Competent Comics.

FEB180037 HELLBOY OMNIBUS TP VOL 02 STRANGE PLACES $24.99
Another Mignola-verse collection this one of the bigger ones. I own them all.

JAN180561 A STRANGE & BEAUTIFUL SOUND HC $19.99FEB180444 EIGHT MILLION WAYS TO DIE HC $24.99APR180610 MULTIPLE WARHEADS TP VOL 02 GHOST TOWN (MR) $17.99MAR181387 LUCKY LUKE TP VOL 68 OVER THE MISSISSIPPI $11.95NOV170835 SOUTHERN BASTARDS TP VOL 04 GUT CHECK (MR) $16.99
Here's a bunch of stand alone larger books, collections and trades of OGN-formats. That first one is reflective Zep, so that's kind of interesting. Eight Million Ways To Die was a solid book and a movie famous for its opening weekend fecklessness, I'd want to take a peak to see how jK Snyder handled that material. That Brandon Graham has a book coming out after his flurry of controversy and the delayed response that made almost everyone believe even more in the initial charges plus check off a few more boxes on the abusive diatribe bingo card, that makes his moves even odder and more unfortunate. I wonder if it will have an effect on sell-through. Luky Luke in any format is fun. Also fun is Southern Bastards, although there's just enough human tragedy to make it sorrowful all around.

APR181559 EC JACK DAVIS HARVEY KURTZMAN DEATH STAND HC $29.99
This Davis/Kurtzman work is about as fun as mainstream comics get, featuring multiple-period action stuff from two series. Jack Davis was a King.

FEB181748 OUT IN THE OPEN HC $24.99
I don't remember the novel on which this is based, but it's already too far into the summer to look a friendly hammock reader in the eye.

*****

The full list of this week's releases, including some titles with multiple cover variations and a long, impressive list of toys and other stuff that isn't comics, can be found here. Despite this official list there's no guarantee a comic will show up in the stores as promised, or in all of the stores as opposed to just a few. Also, stores choose what they carry and don't carry so your shop may not carry a specific publication. There are a lot of comics out there.

To find your local comic book store, check this list; and for one I can personally recommend because I've shopped there, albeit a while back, try this.

The above titles are listed with their Diamond order code in the first field, which may assist you in finding comics at your shop or having them order something for you they don't have in-stock. Ordering through a direct market shop can be a frustrating experience, so if you have a direct line to something -- you know another shop has it, you know a bookstore has it -- I'd urge you to consider all of your options.

* Diamond has created a pop-up program around spinner racks. That's one of those ideas that seems like a really good idea and yet I have no idea if it will work a tiny bit, a lot or not at all. I always bet on the house.

* finally, it's worth noting when Robert Kirkman signs a major outside-of-comics media deal because he and Mark Millar are the idealized creators in terms of shape and scope of their careers right now. Deals like these weaken the grip that the idea of a career in mainstream comics and the adoption of its best goals for creators has on the best genre-interested talent.

Your 2018 Russ Manning Promising Newcoming Award Nominees
Comic-Con announced the 2018 nominees for the Russ Manning Promising Newcomer Award Monday afternoon via press release. The award is presented yearly to a comics artist "who early in his or her career shows a superior knowledge and ability in the art of creating comics."

The award's namesake, Russ Manning, was known for his work on the comic strip version of Star Wars, the iconic newspaper strip Tarzan and the memorable comic book effort Magnus, Robot Figher. He was an early supporter of Comic-Con as a popular professional guest.

* Nat Gertler's boutique publishing press About Comics has a pair of books out for Father's Day: The Fathers and Heirs Of Heaven, both featuring work from Joe Lane. The latter is a re-release, apparently. Those both look great, and I hope over the next twenty years we get a deep exploration of themed gag comics and recurring gag works.

* there's rarely a better snapshot of the mainstream superhero comics industry than the twitter feed of a successful retailer. Count the number of Marvel-driven policies that either aren't really driving people to read for content or are simply kind of moving people to buy one such comic over another. Repeat ad infinitum.

* not comics: preferred celebrity nerd-culture presenter of the last half-decade Chris Hardwick has lost gigs including high-profile San Diego moderator assignments after horrific accusations of abuse within a relationship surfaced, including about half dozen personal/professional crossover actions that even if you are the most staunch advocate of not getting involved in people's private lives would seem to be enough to walk away. The worst of the personal stuff is denied; almost none of the workplace crossover is even engaged. This is wider awfulness and doesn't really hit on the comics community as directly as some other, similar, stories, although I'm interested in the notion of these moderation gigs as perks and that companies would take them away from someone accused of awful things. I believe one way to reduce the number of awful actions and awful actors is to seek appropriate censuring action from multiple institutions involved.

Here. I found this article to be quite scary because of its open shift to defending the political reasons for firing the editorial cartoonist Rob Rogers. It is a distance to travel from calling something a "personnel problem" and making the assertions published here. That distance is crossed in the blink of an eye, almost tumbling into view, which just goes to show you how firmly the underlying values are held.

Saying that someone is angry or simply not funny or dwells too much on a single subject is bad enough. These are well-known Internet blanket-trashing techniques that dragged into the real world flop on the sidewalk and smoke in the sun when they are not buoyed by statistical and qualitative analysis. Still effective, though, even if it's just for dummies. Yet let's not dance around it. When a measure for single-issue dominance or humor or anger is a personal "to suit me" style call, that's a political judgment.

We can sort of fast-forward through that, though, because the idea is floated without obfuscation that Rogers' job is to augment the positions of the paper. Well, fuck you. That is a disgusting and open break with a century of American journalism's best practices. I think of the papers I worked for, and the opinion creators including cartoonists they treated with respect by running their opinions whether the majority of us on staff or the owner in Arizona believed in their views or not, and it's easy to become discouraged. This leeway was given to conservative cartoonists like MacNelly and Werner as well. Letting the people you hire do their job was done in service to the community, out of respect for readers to discern their own feelings and not just have them reinforced, and because of the basic professional courtesy afforded our journalists. These statements are vomitous.

And you know what? One of the premises is not even close to true. Rogers brings the virtues of clarity and directness to his cartoons, but he is hardly angry. Look at these cartoons that were banned. This is pretty tame stuff. This is a two on the open Internet, a three in conservative alternative media, a three-point-five in editorial cartooning overall, on the old anger scale. We could go on to say that some of the best cartoons ever were done by those angered, but the argument as presented doesn't meet the criteria for that kind of measured response. The whole argument is shit-stupid. All of this is clearly ugly, partisan politics without apology, underscored by the notion that might makes right even when it comes to shaping the front lines of cultural narrative. I wish I had a magic subscription so that I could cancel it one million times.

Rogers cartoon among the rejected; I guess dad jokes are incendiary hate-bombs now

Link through the image. Much of this is about her Beatles-related new book. I hope the dialogue around that work won't dismiss it for its backward-looking nature. I want artists as honest and masterful as Carol Tyler to write about whatever they want, free from made-up marketing constraints.

* the filmmakers behind the Drew Friedman documentary are seeking another round of funding with a promise they will try to have the film appear by end of summer 2018. You know, that $100 tier is not bad, if you think of buying the film and the t-shirt by itself you'd get to half that. I hope the film is good!

Go, Read: Charles Brownstein In Japan On State Of CBLDFHere. The interesting thing about this, particularly for long-time observers of the Fund, is that Brownstein directly addresses the fact that the CBLDF hasn't managed a retail case since 2007. That might have been a part of other speeches and presentations, but it's not one I remember seeing until this one.

Random Comics News Story Round-Up* not comics: Dirk Wood addresses America's point of no return in the opening essay to Full Bleed 2. I always thought that modern America flipped the switch to on when the idea was introduced -- not as directly as many remember, but still -- that America could shop and go to work and make normal the post-9/11 landscape.

* the indy/arts comics seminal figure Milton Knight wrote in to say that the money from recent fundraising efforts allowed him the cushion to move from his horrible situation and to a new town. I'm very happy for him and good on any CR readers that lent him a hand. Comics has a generous heart. He notes that there's a contentious coda you can search out on this site. It would be nice if property owners and managers answered initial inquiries from those they serve as quickly as they answer on-line commentary.

* finally: I missed this article when it first come out, and I literally can't get past the first paragraph because I'm old and stuff keeps popping up in the original framing, BUT it looks like someone's giving Chester Gould's Dick Tracy a spin in comic books again. I don't have that Dick Tracy thing that I think men a generation previous to mine do. Its execution is super-interesting, but it doesn't have the conceptual strength that is frequently applied to it. It would take some clever creative alchemy to make a non-Gould version really work.

Restraining Order Granted Again Stan Lee Advisor Keya Morgan
The Associated Press has a nice summary article here of recent moves taken by member of Lee's longtime legal support and advisement team to sever ties between Lee and Keya Morgan, a memorabilia dealer who had been acting as a business manager for the comics publishing and movie cameo icon since early this year. Morgan entered Lee's orbit through a relationship with Lee's daughter JC and his influence has increased as Lee has felt the absence of his longtime, late wife Joan.

The injunction comes with a pledge by police authorities to investigate for elder abuse, and explains a recent report of armed robbers in Lee's home as the result of a Morgan phone call to authorities implying there was some sort of nefarious activity when it was officials making a welfare check on Lee.

The vast, vast, vast majority of observers to whom I've spoken feel like Lee is better off with his long-established partners and away from Morgan. It is hard to see a scenarios in which he continues his convention appearances at the age of 95. He's certainly done more than his share.

The AP article still cites an estate value of $50M. Barring the state of his real estate holding being more than I'm told, I am still confused how Lee got from five million to $50 million give his household expense and the nature of his entertainment deals. There is more than enough money there for people to be concerned with its eventual dispensation, I'm certain.

* it's Heroes Con this weekend. I'll be interested in what the attendance is like for that show. It's a great audience, and a very commission and drawing-focused show. People have a lot of affection and they should: there are a lot of fans down there for a wide range of cartoonists and there is some great back-issue shopping. I do wonder after the physical size of the show related to that audience, and will scour the Internet for photos and perception tweets. I wish I could be there. If you're going, buy something from Patrick Dean -- he's had a hell of a week.

* other big shows this weekend are in Denver and in Ann Arbor. The Denver show has been very financially successful so far, according to what I hear. The Ann Arbor show, focused on kids comics, has grown to the point where it's become a key show for a key comics audience.

Here are the books that make an impression on me staring at this week's no-doubt largely accurate list of books shipping from Diamond Comic Distributors, Inc. to comic book and hobby shops across North America.

I might not buy all of the works listed here. I might not buy any. You never know. I'd sure look at the following, though.

*****

MAR181638 WEAVER FESTIVAL PHENOMENON HC $20.00
I don't see a whole lot that appeals to me on the lists this week. It's more likely I'm just missing stuff. I didn't miss this one; I bought it directly from the publisher, mostly so I could get the included print. Ron Regé is a special cartoonist who sees things differently than I do in a way that I welcome every last page of his comics. I'm saving this one up to read for when I have a bad day. I bet it pops in the comics shop.

APR180063 RESIDENT ALIEN #3 (OF 4) ALIEN IN NEW YORK $3.99APR180604 MAGE HERO DENIED #9 (OF 15) $3.99APR181670 KAIJUMAX SEASON 4 #1 (OF 6) (MR) $3.99
A light day of comic-shop comic-book format reading. I enjoy the Resident Alien series of series, even though it's obvious that getting this work made into a television show was a top priority. Hey, the money has to be better. I'm enjoy the middle issues of the lates Mage series, although a lot depends on what's to comer. Zander Cannon must have won every bet possible that he'd do over 20 issues of his giant monster prison saga. If there were ten more comics like it I'd probably go to the shop every week.

MAR181670 HELLBOY INTO THE SILENT SEA STUDIO ED $50.00APR180068 BPRD DEVIL YOU KNOW #7 $3.99FEB180036 HELLBOY COMPLETE SHORT STORIES TP VOL 01 $24.99
Three different Hellboy comics in three entirely different formats. That says about the publishing achievement that is the Mignola-verse.

FEB180480 CLOUD HOTEL TP $19.99
This is a Top Shelf comic. I think I remember liking the previous book they did with this author, but I could be completely fabricating that, too. Hey, the last few years have been rough memory-wise. Not a lot I want to remember.

APR181314 COSMO THE MERRY MARTIAN COMPLETE TP $10.99
I've never seen this Archie-published funnybook material save for book about Archie publishing more generally. I hope it's good.

MAR180607 IT WILL ALL HURT TP $18.99APR180475 PROXIMA CENTAURI #1 (OF 6) $3.99
Two from Farel Dalrymple, a to-die-for drawer and a scruffy writer with charm to spare. I look forward to the start of another series, this one from Image.

*****

The full list of this week's releases, including some titles with multiple cover variations and a long, impressive list of toys and other stuff that isn't comics, can be found here. Despite this official list there's no guarantee a comic will show up in the stores as promised, or in all of the stores as opposed to just a few. Also, stores choose what they carry and don't carry so your shop may not carry a specific publication. There are a lot of comics out there.

To find your local comic book store, check this list; and for one I can personally recommend because I've shopped there, albeit a while back, try this.

The above titles are listed with their Diamond order code in the first field, which may assist you in finding comics at your shop or having them order something for you they don't have in-stock. Ordering through a direct market shop can be a frustrating experience, so if you have a direct line to something -- you know another shop has it, you know a bookstore has it -- I'd urge you to consider all of your options.

* somehow missed this post on the first round of Lucy Shelton Caswell research award winners. Frank Santoro is probably the familiar name there for most people, but all of the proposals sound solid. I am all for every last thing in comics that offers up cash money and support for use of comics institutions to do comics-related things. We don't have a safety net, and we don't have a structured industry, but comics can provide a bit of a framework for itself through the smart application of the resources available to it. It'd be neat to win something with Lucy's name on it.

I imagine that Kleist book will look great and the rest of them will be close to that good-looking at the very least.

* Vertigo is apparently going to do a linewide relaunch. Since these are (ostensibly) creator-driven, stand-alone titles, you don't get the sense that there's a line-wide story gearing up, so it really is a publishing strategy move designed to drive attention to the books. If they're really good, they'll be fine; if they're not, I'm not sure any kind of launch strategy will work. None of the books described in the PR seem like surefire winners to me; they all seem like fairly standard modern TV show pitches. I'll be curious to see how this group turns out. That announcement also officially places Mark Doyle into the Executive Editor position.

* finally: The Beathas a nice round-up of the creative teams and cover imagery from DC's twin lines of done-in-one stand-alones. If that works, that could potential shift comics several degrees from its current orientation. One thing that might keep it from working is if they keep a written by/illustrated by split in credits, with the writer being the most prominent. That is absolutely tone deaf in terms of where creators are right now when it comes to how they feel credit should be apportioned.

Random Comics News Story Round-Up* David Canfield tips his hat in the way of the late Anthony Bourdain's literary talent by starting with his recent comics work. Julian Dassai points out Bourdain's NYC 'zine/comix publishing roots stretching back to the middle 1980s.

* we mentioned somewhere on the site that this was going to happen, but here's a report from the dedication ceremony regarding a big chunk of Mark Nevins' collection to Holy Cross.

Festivals Extra: Peripheral Event NERD HQ Breaks With CCIHere. Barely heard of it; never been; not for me. Still, it reminds me there will likely be a cycling out of a number of events, and I don't think it will change SDCC culture much at all. It's already different there than the high fan-crazy days of Twilight, and the comics part continues to chug along, a show within a show. I'll keep going through at least through the next phase that comes along, I think.

Random Comics News Story Round-Up* the chef, writer and television host Anthony Bourdain has passed away. He was in recent years a contributor to a pair of DC/Vertigo comics in addition to his television work. That television work included a cultural viewpoint that included comics, including a memorable in-episode visit with Harvey Pekar. Bourdain apparently killed himself by hanging. He was 61.

* here's a report on a small show in Northern Island that sounds nice. The report itself is way too gushing for me to get a realistic portrait of the show's value, but I appreciate learning -- or being reminded, I'm old -- that it exists.

Random Comics News Story Round-Up* missed Will McPhail's short comic about the recent British royal wedding. I'm surprised that more wasn't directly made of the bride's family story even as people were being charmed by her mother. My first choice would be that no special attention be paid this kind of wedding, although all the younger royals seem like they will conduct themselves as thoughtful celebrities.

Congratulations To Bryan Talbot And Neil Gaiman On Their Entry Into The Royal Society Of LiteratureBig year for the group overall. I don't know much about this group other than it sounds cooler than anything the US has, plus I think you get to sign in with Lord Byron's pen, also cooler than anything we have. Congrats to those fine authors and expert comics-makers.

By Request Extra: Jordan Shiveley Could Use Your HelpHere. It's medical-related, and a very modest ask given Shiveley's condition. Shiveley is generous advocate of the art form and its practitioners. Please join me in donating what you can if you are so inclined. Every dollar helps.

Here are the books that make an impression on me staring at this week's no-doubt largely accurate list of books shipping from Diamond Comic Distributors, Inc. to comic book and hobby shops across North America.

I might not buy all of the works listed here. I might not buy any. You never know. I'd sure look at the following, though.

*****

APR181664 NOBROW TP VOL 10 (MR) $24.00
More commentary than consumption driven by this week's books. I spent a couple of weekends with this lovely volume and enjoyed it quite a bit. I find these drawing exercises work for as me as oblique-narrative comics stories probably a bit more than they should. It's a handsome series of images, though, and a way to reacquaint with certain artists.

FEB181215 ABOUT BETTYS BOOB HC $29.99
Don't know the artists, don't always buy adult-aimed work from the company, but illness/recovery stories are a powerful subdivision of comics right now. I'd certainly pick it up to take a look.

JAN181821 KAIJUMAX TP VOL 03 SEASON THREE KING OF MONSTAS $19.99
Zander Cannon's monsters-in-prison comic reminds me of the Brubaker/Philips team pounding their way through various film and literary genres, only Zander's is done with giant monsters. I liked this volume in serial form very much.

FEB180039 HELLBOY AND THE BPRD 1955 TP $19.99JAN180108 JENNY FINN HC (MR) $17.99
This week's Mignola-verse items. I liked the latter more than the former.

FEB180045 MOEBIUS LIBRARY INSIDE MOBIUS HC VOL 02 $39.99
Any series presentation featuring this early a number and this big of an artist has got to be filled with gems, and I suspect this one is too.

APR181139 GIANT DAYS #39 $3.99APR180174 BATMAN PRELUDE TO THE WEDDING NIGHTWING VS HUSH #1 $3.99APR180239 EXIT STAGE LEFT THE SNAGGLEPUSS CHRONICLES #6 (OF 6) $3.99APR180140 JUSTICE LEAGUE #1 $3.99APR180425 RICK VEITCH THE ONE #5 (OF 6) $4.99FEB180658 MOONSTRUCK #6 $3.99APR180633 SCALES & SCOUNDRELS #10 $3.99APR180639 WALKING DEAD #180 CVR A ADLARD & STEWART (MR) $3.99APR180756 CAPTAIN AMERICA #703 $3.99APR180698 DEADPOOL #1 $4.99APR180726 DOCTOR STRANGE #1 $3.99APR180691 IMMORTAL HULK #1 $4.99
A lot of comic-book format comics of interest this week, although I'll probably end up with only two or three of them. John Allison writing makes Giant Days an easy buy for me. I have no interest in that Batman comic but the strangeness of that title in any other context delights me. The Snagglepuss I didn't even know had started, so I guess it did not penetrate into the imagination like some of the similar projects. Justice League going to a new #1 was bigger new five and ten years ago. It's always great to see anything on the stands from Rick Veitch. I like the Moonstruck and S&S series and wish there were more comics designed more to charm than impress. Walking Dead chugs along. I like these Captain America comics Mark Waid is writing while holding rack space for the Coates re-vamp. Those last three are I assume Marvel new #1s, and that company really needs these new number ones to hit. I only have a vague idea what's going on in one of them. Uh-oh.

MAR180999 BLACK BOLT TP VOL 02 HOME FREE $17.99MAR180991 CAPTAIN AMERICA BY WAID AND SAMNEE TP VOL 01 HOME OF BRAVE $17.99
These are two of the better recent runs of serial comics from Marvel: on a surprise (the Black Bolt series) and one not,

APR180794 RISE OF BLACK PANTHER #6 (OF 6) $3.99
Still not sure why they do so many comics when the core titles aren't exactly killing it. I guess the reason is obvious.

MAR182159 PETER KUPER CONVERSATIONS SC $50.00
I"m not a fan of this series as a former participant, but I am glad to see the books as a lot of print and early Internet conversations fall out of print. Peter's a smart, articulate man.

APR181568 PRISON PIT GN VOL 06 $14.99
Hell yeah. Last one, too.

*****

The full list of this week's releases, including some titles with multiple cover variations and a long, impressive list of toys and other stuff that isn't comics, can be found here. Despite this official list there's no guarantee a comic will show up in the stores as promised, or in all of the stores as opposed to just a few. Also, stores choose what they carry and don't carry so your shop may not carry a specific publication. There are a lot of comics out there.

To find your local comic book store, check this list; and for one I can personally recommend because I've shopped there, albeit a while back, try this.

The above titles are listed with their Diamond order code in the first field, which may assist you in finding comics at your shop or having them order something for you they don't have in-stock. Ordering through a direct market shop can be a frustrating experience, so if you have a direct line to something -- you know another shop has it, you know a bookstore has it -- I'd urge you to consider all of your options.

* if you followed recent accusations aimed at cartoonist Brandon Graham regarding interactions with trans members of the comics community as well as behavior more generally towards women in a social setting, you might be interested that some weeks later he published an extremely angry and abusive comic he called a "diss track" aimed at those that drove the accusations, and that initial reviews on-line of said comic and Graham generally as a result were basically, "go fuck yourself." The irony at play is that by pushing back in anger in order to question the mostly veiled charges against him last month and how they were made, Graham has openly acted worthy of censure.

* by the way, you'll have to rely on your own google-fu to find the things mentioned in the last bullet point because even linking to this stuff, particularly Graham's comic, I feel like I'm enabling rather than enlightening. I bet the comic is gone by now. I do think that the narrative around Graham for younger cartoonists that are his professional peers has changed in a way it will bear tracking to see how any fallout develops. I also kind of feel, and this may be dumb, that we should maybe reset priorities and baseline expectations so that all comics shows aren't social events as much as professional events with a social element -- although try stepping in between those forces as they reach out for one another, damn the consequences. Is garage sale + key party really an improvement over garage sale + more garage sale as our primary direct interaction with the outside world? We are lucky not to catch something once a week.

* anyway, I have a lot more thinking to do about all of this. And some research: I'm told that those pathetic dorks that cluster under the comicsgate designation have taken to championing Graham, which is gross, but I haven't put my eyeballs on it yet. Every apology at my lack of speed.

Serge Ewenczyk of Editions çà et là wrote into the site about ten days to announce his company's publication of Frank Santoro's meditative new book Pittsburgh.

My understanding is that Santoro -- a mainstay of Dan Nadel's defunct Picturebox -- doesn't have a North American publisher right now so his relationship with the French-language press is his primary one now. I think that's something we'll see a lot more of. There's something worth noting in comics that there are so many publishers -- I would ask a bright newcomer try several other types of businesses before publisher if they wanted to work in comics -- and yet there are artists like Frank Santoro that seem totally deserving of that kind of relationship and are just lacking one.

The good news is that the pages sent along by Serge look intriguing. Pittsburgh is Santoro's exploration of how his parents went from being in love to not even choosing to recognize one another in a shared workspace. I like his approach to comics and hope as many people read his work as possible.

* the crowd-funder to give Bill and Nadine Messner-Loebs some space to operate while establishing a livable home continues to chug along. Does anyone know how they're doing? I don't have a personal pathway to them. I hope the boost they got from the comics community will give them the ability to kind of do a reset on the basic living circumstances, but I have a feeling there's a chance that a lot more will be necessary as the situation develops the next several months.

* finally, I liked reading about this crowd-funder from Rachelle Meyer that seems to be more about developing work already made in sketchbook form. I don't see a lot of second step fundraiser, but I imagine they are just as necessary.

* there's a nice write-up here on the number of professionals denied professional registration at NYCC this year. What I don't see is an explanation as to why this specific group of pros would be subject to this specific glitch. In fact, the system they describe sounds like it has a manual element that would kind of preclude systemic glitches, although maybe they're saying that got switched off. I'm also thinking this seems to happen year after year. Oh, who the hell knows. At least some respected comics pros that want to do business or just go to the show should have that chance now. If I had to run a system like that my head would explode. My favorite shows are free to everyone but those selling at the show, and I hope in the next couple of years to make one of them free to exhibitors, too.

EW Provides First-Look At Color From Hell PagesIt's all explained through the link. Eddie Campbell is a first-rate comics-maker and obvious Hall of Famer ten years into his career, so is the other fellow, and whatever they want to do with their things is okay by me -- not that I get a vote.

Random Comics News Story Round-Up
* one of the problems when you charge for attendance at your comics show is you have to police who qualifies for press and pro badges and at some point you get that wrong, like NYCC here.

* congratulations to Charles Hatfield on his completions of presidential duties as a driving force of the Comics Studies Society, and congrats to that group for having Carol Tilley take over. That's a major post that deserves to be read all the way through for the new officers and their first slate of awards winners.